School board members gather for annual convention

Over 1,200 Iowa school board members and superintendents will be in Des Moines on Wednesday and Thursday for the annual meeting of the Iowa Association of School Boards. Convention coordinator, Lou Ann Gvist, says there will be numerous workshops for the school board members and superintendents to attend.

She says they have a range of topics pertaining to the issues schoolboards face. Those include superintendent/board relations, policy, collective bargaining and school finance.

Gvist said the convention will feature several speakers. “We are really excited about our keynote speakers on Thursday…the day will be focused on developing a culture of innovation,” Gvist explains.

“Dr. Tony Wagner from Harvard is kicking off our opening general session with an exciting keynote. And then following lunch, Dr. David Warlick is also going to talk about innovation.” Marti Kline is another I.A.S.B. convention organizer who says Iowa native Ben Milne, creator of the money exchange company Dwolla will talk about his struggles in school at Cedar Falls and in college, and how we went on to overcome them and be successful.

“He’s created many jobs, he’s run more than one company and has been an employer of many people. And he’s going to talk to the group about how they can make sure that all different kinds of students are included. And all different types of students with learning needs, that their needs are met in the classroom and they can go on to be successful students and successful business people,” Kline says.

Lieutenant Governor Kim Reynolds will speak to the delegates on Thursday afternoon about the STEM or Science Technology Engineering and Math initiative. You can find out more on the convention at: www.ia-sb.org .